This Week: Council to vote Tuesday on contract for North Natomas park amenities

A western meadowlark flies over the grass at North Natomas Regional Park in 2012.
Lezlie Sterling
Sacramento Bee file

A western meadowlark flies over the grass at North Natomas Regional Park in 2012.
Lezlie Sterling
Sacramento Bee file

Residents of North Natomas have waited a long time for their sprawling regional park to get the amenities that would make it a true hub for the community. Now, bit by bit, those amenities are arriving.

The Sacramento City Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday on awarding a contract worth almost $1 million to B&M Builders Inc. to erect shade canopies, parking and other facilities needed to house a new farmers market. Construction is scheduled to wrap up by next fall.

Since 2007, the city gradually has been upgrading the regional park. It has added sidewalks and a pedestrian and bike trail to connect the park to nearby neighborhoods. A new dog park was completed in summer 2009. A $5.5 million youth baseball complex and children’s play area opened in November 2013. Still-planned improvements include two more baseball fields, a stage, pathway lighting, a concession stand and scoreboards.

Even with the upgrades, most of the park’s 207 acres remain empty. Friends of the North Natomas Regional Park is pursuing the idea of an Olympic-size swimming pool, but has yet to find a way to pay for it.

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Council to study pot cultivation changes

A hearing on proposed amendments to Rancho Cordova’s marijuana cultivation ordinance, including a ban on outdoor cultivation, is scheduled during Tuesday’s City Council meeting.

A staff report says the proposed changes are a response to residents’ complaints about the strong odor associated with growing a large quantity of mature marijuana plants, the proximity of children to areas under cultivation and the potential for increased neighborhood crime associated with outdoor growing operations.

In addition to prohibiting all outdoor cultivation, the proposed ordinance would limit indoor cultivation to qualified patients and primary caregivers who are older than 18 and have obtained a cultivation permit from police. The ordinance would also add regulations on where and how indoor cultivation could take place.

The meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers, 2729 Prospect Park Drive in Rancho Cordova.

Community dialogue on policing in Davis

The Davis Police Department on Wednesday will hold the second in a series of community dialogues intended to develop a common understanding of community policing in the city.

The dialogues were begun following the department’s acquisition and subsequent return of a military surplus armored rescue vehicle. Although police said the vehicle was not intended for offensive use, but rather to protect occupants from gunfire and hazards, residents argued that the vehicle would lead to a sense of police militarization.

Police said the community dialogue will focus on the concerns, emotions and fears associated with police militarization; the police department’s response to critical incidents and protests; and aligned expectations around the needs of the general community and police.

Wednesday’s event will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Davis Veterans Memorial Center, 203 E. 14th St. in Davis.

Info: http://police.cityofdavis.org

Placer supervisors to discuss shelter plan

The Placer County Board of Supervisors on Thursday is scheduled to hear a local nonprofit’s proposal to transform an old jail into a homeless shelter in north Auburn. Supporters of the plan include the Rev. Mike Carroll of St. Teresa’s Church in Auburn. Last year, Carroll founded Right Hand Auburn, a nonprofit that seeks to help homeless people.

Until this point, Right Hand Auburn had been unsuccessful in getting county officials to consider the proposal. County staff previously said they would wait for the results of an outside homeless study before taking any action.

Carroll’s group already has raised $60,000 and has pledged to operate the shelter without county funds. The facility at the Placer County Government Center is an old World War II-era Army barracks that most recently was used to house minimum security inmates. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. at 175 Fulweiler Ave. in Auburn.

Info: www.placer.ca.gov/bos

Forum to focus on poverty in El Dorado

Citing estimates that 1 in 10 El Dorado County residents lives at or below the poverty level, the Women’s Fund El Dorado announced that its annual Community Needs Forum will focus on the topic “Breaking the Cycle of Poverty.”

A panel of experts will include Ed Manansala, deputy superintendent of the El Dorado County Office of Education; Dr. Veronica Velasquez-Morfin of the El Dorado County Community Health Center in Placerville; El Dorado County Superior Court Judge Dylan Sullivan; and Tiffany Rolston, an organizational change management consultant.

The buffet dinner and Q&A forum will be held from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the Cameron Park Community Center, 2501 Country Club Drive, Cameron Park. Tickets are $20 and must be purchased in advance from womensfundeldorado.org.

Home improvement event opens Friday

Hundreds of exhibits featuring products and services for homes and yards will be on display Friday through Sunday at the Northern California Home and Landscape Expo. Those seeking to build, remodel or redecorate can glean ideas at the event, to be held at Cal Expo, 1600 Exposition Blvd. in Sacramento.

Info: www.homeandlandscapeexpo.com

Trail run scheduled Saturday in Folsom

The Folsom Southside Trail Run on Saturday will feature a 5K, 10K, half-marathon, a 21-mile loop and a 50K beginning at the Salmon Falls aid station, 7755 Folsom-Auburn Road. The event begins at 8 a.m.

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